Watching You
by talklove
Summary: "Why are you always watching me?" he asked her. She shrugged and tried to hide her discomfort, not knowing how to answer his question without embarrassing herself. SasuIno. Slight SasuSaku and NaruSaku.
1. Chapter 1

So he was back.

Though his homecoming wasn't accepted with complete welcome arms, he was back to his home at long last. The enormous burden that Naruto harbored on his shoulders was finally lifted and Sakura's heart was finally at peace. To them, it was as if the gods blessed them and they finally had their beloved teammate back.

With the war over, and despite all their losses, all five nations began their period of rebuilding as Team 7 did. It was a time of forced content- both for the sake of recovering from the pain of war and to maintain themselves.

It seemed as if the only ones genuinely happy that Sasuke was back were the members of Team 7, save for Sai and Yamato. The reactions of the rest of the village were mixed, ranging from neutrality and empathy for Sakura and Naruto to utter opposition that they made clear.

"He's a traitor. Once a traitor, always a traitor," they said.

"They know nothing," Sasuke would think to himself as he merely accepted their loathe. He knew that any retaliation would just make them resent him more.

Amidst all this, there was one other person who was truly, genuinely happy that Sasuke had returned, though she respectfully kept her distance.

**-XoxOxoX-**

Ino sighed as she caught sight of Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke at one of the little shops across the Yamanaka Flower Shop. It had been a year since the war and his homecoming and the old Team 7's relationship astronomically improved, though Sasuke was still socially awkward and not a man of hugs or affection.

Ino rested her chin atop her palm and gazed at the trio with dazing eyes. Naruto was laughing about something before Sakura smacked him behind his head and got a grumble in reply. Sasuke was merely standing there with the smallest smile on his face while the shopkeeper laughed.

The sight sent a fluttering feeling through her; it was nice seeing Naruto and Sakura cheerful again- truly this time. Before, no matter if they were enjoying each other's company going out for a night, spending time with the others, or greeting each other as they passed by, Ino could see that the pain rooted itself so deep within them; minute signs of it showed whenever Ino encountered either of them.

So this sight was nice.

She was happy for them. She couldn't deny that.

Herself, though, she kept her distance. She was there during the trials, during the redemption ceremony, and even during Naruto's and Sakura's welcome back festivities for him but hardly went within ten feet of the Uchiha. Their first interaction in years merely, only consisted of a small smile and a soft "welcome back" on her part and a mere nod of acknowledgement in his at the homecoming festivities.

She wanted so badly to hug him, feel his presence so close that she knew for sure he was really back, and to just exchange more than a few words and a nod. But she knew she had no place in his life; it wasn't her right. Even before he left, she had no place in his life other than being a fellow Konoha shinobi and maybe just an annoying fangirl.

Ino wasn't a close friend- she wasn't even sure if she was a friend in the first place- she wasn't even a teammate, and she hadn't spoken to the guy ever since Team 10's last mission with Team 7 that felt so long ago. Where, in all that, did she have the right to literally walk up to him and give him the biggest hug and welcome she died to give?

Even without a right, Ino watched him from afar. Whenever she and her friends had a get together, ran errands or bumped into the three, she'd subtly lay her sights on Sasuke. It wasn't lust. It wasn't jealousy of Sakura being so close to him. It wasn't anything she'd expect to feel.

She just watched him, as Hinata had watched Naruto.

So there she was, sitting on the stool behind the flower shop's counter, gazing out the window at the golden three mingling outside.

Ino sighed as she stretched her back and arms. The day was slow, with only a couple customers here and there and all she'd done all day was sit basking in her boredom. Her teammates were off on a two-month mission and her usual company, Sakura, had been busy building back her bond with her own team.

She laid her head on the counter and felt herself nod off before the front door's bell rang, jarring her awake.

"Ino!" Naruto said cheerfully as he entered, with Sakura and Sasuke right behind him.

"Oh! Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke," she said, feeling a rush go through her when she saw the onyx eyed man come in. He'd never entered the shop before and was looking around the setting with interested eyes.

"What brings you here?" Ino asked, putting a smile on her face.

"We were just wondering if you'd want to head to the Sunahama Festival with us tomorrow," Sakura said excitedly, "Tsunade-sama gave us a leave from missions and since the festival's right around the corner, we decided to go. It'd be great if you came too!"

"Yeah, we've already asked everybody else but they're all going on missions," Naruto added. Ino sweat dropped with narrowed, suspicious eyes.

"So I was your last resort?" she asked, the corners of her mouth twitching into an annoyed grin. Naruto quickly hid behind Sakura.

"No, no," Sakura said, sweat dropping herself, and holding her hands up as if Ino were about to pounce on them, "He just meant no one else is able go so it would be just us four." Ino blew a small wind at her bangs and leaned her cheek on her hand. Sasuke remained silent behind Naruto and Sakura but looked at her just as the other two did.

"Will you be able to go?" Sakura asked, the smile returning to her face.

Ino pondered this a bit. The Sunahama Festival was held on the farthest southern end of the Land of Fire and had a marvelous reputation of being one of the grandest events of the year. She'd always wanted to go but the fact that she was just going with the trio made her hesitate.

Normally, she would have thought that this was her chance to make her advance on Sasuke, but now she felt slightly uncomfortable. The festival was three days long and it took a day of travel to get there. She didn't know if she'd be comfortable being around them for five days straight.

But what the heck. She had nothing to do since her team was off on a mission and she hadn't had any fun for the last couple of months. Maybe a trip like this would be a nice break from routine.

Ino smiled, "Sure, I'm down to go."

"Great!" Sakura said as Naruto cheered. Sasuke still remained silent.

"We'll see you at the South gate tomorrow morning, then?" Sakura said, starting to turn around to leave. Her companions started to follow her.

"Sounds good," Ino replied almost too enthusiastically.

When the front door shut, Ino let out a sigh and didn't realize how tensed her body was. She felt her body relax and found her palms slightly sweaty. This was her reaction to him when he was only a few feet away, silent and with Sakura and Naruto around.

'_Ino, get a hold of yourself,'_ she thought as she shook her head to get rid of the feeling.

Suddenly, she regretted saying yes to their invitation.

**-XoxOxoX-**

_So I just wanted to test an idea out to see if it would be a good one to continue on a multi-chapter fic. I know not much has happened yet, but it would be so great if you guys gave me feedback on this! It would be much help. Questions, concerns, and especially suggestions are welcome. Thanks for reading! _


	2. Chapter 2

Ino groaned in relief as she threw herself on the bed face first, immersing herself in white fluffiness. Sakura laughed as she entered the room right after her.

"Tired?" Sakura asked her friend as she threw her bag in one corner of the room. Ino sat up and threw her bag right next to her friend's.

"Are you kidding? We traveled a day's worth distance in half a day," Ino said sitting back down on the side of the bed, "I'm beat."

The group had left Konoha in the late morning and made their way on foot south to the town of Utsukushi where the Sunahama Festival was always held. Ino never got a first hand taste of how far Team 7's stamina went until now; she almost had a hard time keeping up with their speed. She wasn't lying- she was tired.

The whole trip went mostly in silence, with Sakura up front as the navigator and the other three following close behind. The other half of the time consisted of chatting between Naruto, Sakura and Ino. Sasuke, for the majority, remained silent but listening and only spoke when spoken to.

The uneasiness Ino felt had failed to disappear and only worsened traveling right beside Sasuke. At one point, Ino had spaced out so much as Naruto and Sakura talked that she hadn't noticed Sasuke jumping to the same branch as she was. They had collided lightly, with Sasuke briefly grabbing her arms and pushing himself off before they had a chance to fall.

"Sorry," he had said to her as they continued on. Ino merely nodded to acknowledge his apology. His touch had sent eerie electricity through her and was startled by it. She didn't space out the rest of the trip.

Sakura stretched as she yawned before going to the drapes and pulling them open to let the afternoon sun in. The day was beautiful out and the clouds hung over like clumps of gorgeous cotton.

"It's only about 2 in the afternoon and the festival doesn't start until tomorrow," Sakura said, turning to Ino with a smile, "How about we go to the inn's hot springs?"

Ino cheered and jumped up from the bed, her fatigue almost nonexistent. A relaxing time at the hot springs sounded like pure heaven.

"Let's go!" she said.

"Let's go where?" Naruto asked as he and Sasuke walked into their room from theirs next door. Naruto plopped himself on the bed where Ino had gotten up from, "Plans already?"

"Yeah, would you two want to come down to the hot springs with us? There's nothing else to do until tomorrow. Then we can have a night out to dinner," Sakura asked as she shooed Sasuke aside who was standing right in front of their bags to get a her evening clothes.

"Sure," Sasuke replied, "I'll go get my things too."

"Yeah, my feet are killing me," Naruto groaned as he raised his feet and wiggled his toes. Ino grunted and smacked him upside the head.

"OW! What was that for, Ino?!" Naruto cried, holding the back of his head in pain.

"Don't do that. That was gross."

**-XoxOxoX-**

"Ahh this is the life," Ino sighed as she laid her head back on the stone edge of the hot spring. The hot water really did the trick of relaxing her muscles and calming her shaking nerves.

"Yeah, tell me about it," Sakura sighed with her as she did the same. They sat across from one another in one of the hot springs with the others occupied with other women.

"How have you been, Sakura?" Ino asked, closing her eyes, "I haven't talked to you in forever since you've always been with your little trio for the last couple of months."

"I've been great!" Sakura said cheerfully. For the first time, Ino suddenly felt a pang of jealousy for her. Sakura looked so happy- the happiest she's ever seen her- and Ino was envious of it. But still, Ino was truly happy for her.

"It seems Team 7 is finally back to the way it used to be," Sakura's face relaxed into a happy daze as she looked down at the steaming water in front of her. Ino examined her then smiled one of her signature, bold smiles with a furrowed brow.

"That's great!" Ino said with real enthusiasm, but she still couldn't shake the jealousy off completely, "I'm really happy for all three of you." Sakura smiled back at her.

"Thank you, Ino," she said, "I've never been happier."

It was back to silence between them as the chatter of the other women continued. Ino sat there in the hot water, letting the heat engulf her in warm arms and relaxing for the first time in what seemed like ages. Though her body calmed, her mind was still restless.

She still couldn't shake the envious feeling.

Did she still love him? She wasn't sure, despite having a watchful eye. She wasn't even sure if it was really "love" in the first place, but merely an interest or deep care for the guy. She had cried when he was proclaimed a missing-nin that needed to be killed. She had thought of him everyday until she realized it was no use to worry and that she had to leave it to Naruto and Sakura.

All she knew was that she still cared about him, whether it be from the childish love or not.

"Ino," Sakura suddenly asked, breaking the silence between them.

Ino raised her head and looked up at her friend across from her, "Hm?"

"Do you still love Sasuke?" Sakura looked at her right in the eyes, not piercing but transfixed on getting an answer. Ino felt the same uncomfortable electricity from when she collided with Sasuke earlier that day.

What was she supposed to say? She didn't love him- love him, she quickly decided that, but if she said she didn't care about him she'd be lying. Ino decided to hide her feelings away for the time being and gave a half-assed answer.

"No," she said, trying to laugh the question off, "Of course not. I let him go a long time ago."

Sakura continued to look at her friend, her expression unreadable. The air wasn't awkward or tense, but it definitely felt off to Ino. Had she answered Sakura's question correctly? Was there even a correct answer?

Sakura then nodded with a small smile that didn't show satisfaction or happiness, but rather acknowledgement. However, Ino still couldn't read what Sakura felt about her answer.

"Do you?" Ino blurted out before Sakura could say anything back. She then regretted asking the question, realizing it was out of place and almost forced. Sakura was smart; she could have caught on to her cover.

Sakura was silent for a moment, her eyes looking down at the water and expression unreadable once again. Ino felt guilt creeping onto her, mistaking her friend's silence as a bad sign.

"Sakura, I'm-" Ino began to say, but was cut off.

"I don't know," Sakura said, still looking down at the water. Her face suddenly lit up into a sad-looking smile as she raised her hands up from the water.

"I've just been so relieved that he finally came back that I…" Sakura tried to say, but paused when she lost her words. Ino waited for her to finish her sentence. Sakura shook her head.

"I just don't know," the pinkette said, almost looking sad, "I feel so elated around him but I just don't know."

Ino suddenly splashed some water at her and mischievously grinned, "Don't look so glum, Forehead. We're here to relax then enjoy ourselves at the festival, remember?"

Sakura was caught by surprise at Ino's sudden change of subject but then returned the splash back at Ino, grinning herself.

"Yeah, I remember, Pig."

**-XoxOxoX-**

Sakura had decided to stay behind at the hot springs a little longer when Ino decided to get out for her skin couldn't handle any more hot water. They were to meet up an hour later at the inn along with Naruto and Sasuke to decide where to go out for dinner that evening.

Ino made her way to the dressing room that they shared with the boys since everywhere else was full- everyone apparently decided to go to the hot springs that day. She prayed that neither of the boys were in there and prayed even more that if they weren't, neither of them would walk in on her changing.

She cautiously reached for the cloth that covered the entrance of the dressing room while she clutched the towel around her. She briefly peeked through the small gap between the drapery and the doorframe and saw no one. Ino sighed in relief and threw the drapery aside as she strode in, "Alright, no one's in here!"

"Ah," Sasuke was standing on the other side of the dressing room she failed to see. He was half naked, clad with only white shorts and in the middle of fastening the button on his pants. His face looked only slightly surprised.

Ino stopped in her tracks when she realized she walked in on him changing- fastening the buttons on his pants, no less. She felt blood rush to her cheeks in embarrassment, also realizing that she was only wrapped in a towel herself.

"S-sorry!" she stammered, turning right around, clutching her towel even tighter. Her face was still growing redder.

"Hn. It's alright," Sasuke merely replied. She heard the ruffling of cloth as he put on his shirt.

"I'm just about finished anyway."

Ino's heart was beating frantically; she almost felt like she was going to have a heart attack. She was wrapped in only a towel, in a dressing room, with Uchiha Sasuke. Any girl's heart would be beating as fast as a mouse's.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and saw that he was making his way out the dressing room with a small bag slung over his shoulder.

"You can change now," he said, taking his free hand off her shoulder and slipping it into his pocket, "I'll wait for you outside." Ino was speechless for a moment. The shoulder he had touched felt electrocuted. It was uncomfortable.

"A-alright," she managed to say before hurrying to her bag.

"By the way," Sasuke stopped right at the entrance of the dressing room, "you might want to pull that towel down at the back."

He brushed past the drapery and exited the dressing room.

Ino sweat dropped as the drapery Sasuke pushed aside settled.

_What?_

She screamed in embarrassment, humiliated.

Yes, she definitely regretted saying yes to their invitation.

**-XoxOxoX-**

The rest of the evening went awkwardly for Ino. Partly because of what happened in the dressing room but also partly because she felt like an outsider with the three.

The trip there wasn't so awkward for her because they were distracted with traveling on foot and following Sakura. But now, sitting at a table eating barbeque, there were no distractions aside from the food. Ino tried her hardest to not make her presence seem so out of place.

Their conversations were light and full of laughter (aside from Sasuke), and most of it came from Naruto and Sakura and the restaurant's owner that came to mingle with his customers. Ino just sat there eating, listening, and only spoke when it was necessary or to tease Naruto. She was careful not to make eye contact, much less look, at the Uchiha who sat directly across from her.

After dinner, they made their way back to the inn and stopped by a couple of shops along the way. Ino avoided being so close to Sasuke the whole time and only acknowledged his presence when either Naruto or Sakura did.

After what happened in the dressing room on top of the discomfort that was already there made her wish she had stayed back in Konoha. Embarrassment on top of discomfort wasn't a good combination.

As they stopped by the last shop and Naruto and Sakura were awing over a poster of a new movie that was coming out, Sasuke approached Ino.

"I'm sorry if what I said earlier embarrassed you," he said politely as he walked up behind her. She cried out in surprise before turning around to face him, her face beet red once again.

"It didn't," she said quickly, trying to cover her embarrassment. Sasuke looked at her with skeptical eyes- almost amused. It made Ino even more uncomfortable.

"I'm still sorry," Sasuke said, pushing his apology, "I should have been more considerate about it." Ino folded her arms and diverted her eyes to where Naruto and Sakura were, now talking with the shop owner about the new movie.

Was Sasuke trying to talk to her aside from apologizing? She didn't know but decided not to test it. It was already awkward enough for her.

"Meh, it's alright," Ino said with a nonchalant tone, forcing the embarrassment she felt down her throat.

"Not everybody gets to see the goods like that," she said.

Her natural, playful word antics escaped her lips before she realized it and she immediately regretted it.

She received a small smirk from the Uchiha in front of her.

"Then I got pretty lucky," he said, the smirk still on his face as he walked past her and towards their other companions. Ino stood there dumbfounded at his reply. She had tried to find sarcasm in his words but found absolutely none. Her face burned like it had never burned before.

She just wanted to crawl into the darkest hole and never come out.

**-XoxOxoX-**

_I know it still hasn't been eventful but it soon will be, I promise lol I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and please feel free to leave a review with questions, concerns or suggestions! Thanks for reading!_


	3. Chapter 3

That night, Ino couldn't sleep.

If it weren't for the dark, she could have sworn her cheeks were still crimson from the happenings of earlier that day. She had been severely embarrassed twice in just a few hours- by Sasuke, of all people. Her discomfort, in turn, didn't cease and was growing a lot faster than before.

Lying in bed next to Sakura- who was already sound asleep- Ino inwardly cringed as she replayed the day over and over again, absolutely restless and paranoid with her mind racing of different things she should have said and done. The festival hadn't even started yet, but she'd already managed to sabotage her own comfort-zone on this trip. Ino hated it.

She didn't tell Sakura about what happened, especially after their little awkward talk about Sasuke. Her pink-haired friend told her she wasn't sure about her feelings about the guy but Ino still didn't want to risk making things even more awkward. It would soil the trip even more.

Ino had bit her tongue about the subject when the two got ready for bed, trying extremely hard to keep it to herself. Sakura was one of Ino's few confidants, but this was something Ino thought she didn't need to tell her. But keeping her mouth shut was completely against her nature. Whenever something happened, Ino always found herself itching to tell someone about it, whether it be her teammates, her mother or Sakura. At the moment, Shikamaru and Chouji weren't present and this wasn't something she'd mention to her mother. Telling Sakura was out of the question and it was driving her insane.

Ino sighed in frustration from not being able to fall asleep and torturing herself with replaying the day over and over in her head. They had planned to go to the festival around ten the next day for the opening ceremony and it was already four in the morning. The hours seemed to drag by quickly- an odd feeling Ino hadn't felt before. It went slow and fast at the same exact time. However, either way, she'd gotten no rest.

She gave up trying to sleep that night and just lay there, staring up at the pale white ceiling.

**-XoxOxoX-**

The plaza was full of people from all over the Land of Fire, ninja and civilians alike. Almost all the buildings were adorned with decoration for the festival, booths were set up along every road and alley, and the delicious smell of food filled everyone's nostrils. When they said that the Sunahama Festival was grand, it was seriously an understatement.

"Wow, this place is amazing," Naruto said in awe, taking in the setting as they walked to the center of the plaza along with the crowd. The opening ceremony was to start in a few minutes.

"And the food smells great!"

Ino was in the same awe as Naruto was, never seeing a place so packed with people and never smelling anything so good. The summer decorations of dragons, lanterns, flowers and glitter didn't fail to catch her eye and approval. They swayed with the light breeze and the glitter shined under the sun's rays. For a moment, her regret of coming to the festival dwindled a little- the place was just so gorgeous.

But it all came crashing back when Ino realized she almost bumped into Sasuke, who had stopped along with the crowd. The sea of people around the center stage of the plaza was enormous; she could barely see the person standing there over Sasuke's shoulder.

"Welcome, everybody!" the elderly, but loud, man's voice boomed into the microphone, "I am Kochi Uematsu, shichou **(A/N: mayor)** of this lovely town of Tokushima. Welcome to the Sunahama Festival: one of the grandest events of the year in all the Land of Fire!" The crowd erupted in cheers and whistles including Naruto and Sakura.

"Now, I know all of you are itching to indulge yourselves in great food, games, rides and events so I'm going to keep this opening ceremony short," the old man continued, "But it's a great honor to hold this event for the 20th time and having such a wonderful crowd of people here for it. Now, I bid you farewell till the closing ceremony and I hope your time here is full of family, friends, fun and food!"

Suddenly, confetti exploded from out of nowhere, upbeat music roared and dancers came out from behind the stage. The crowd exploded in an even louder round of cheers before slowly dispersing in excitement to "indulge" as the shichou said. The music continuted to join in on the laughter, chatter and shouting.

"Hey, hey," Naruto said, eagerness visibly shining as he turned to his friends, "What should we do first?"

"I'm up for anything," Ino replied, casually leaning away from Sasuke who she felt was too close to her.

The said man noticed the awkward change in stance in the blonde but didn't note too much about it; he figured she was still uncomfortable from the day before. It was almost amusing: the way she tried so hard to subtly make her awkwardness undetectable. The other two didn't notice it, but he absolutely did.

Sakura whipped out a map with a program list from her little bag and looked at it thoughtfully, "Hmm, we just had a late breakfast so we can save lunch for later in the afternoon… let's go to the game booths! They're just right around the corner and they don't look too expensive."

Naruto wooped and led the way while Ino and Sasuke followed the two without objection or agreement. As Sakura chatted away with Sasuke, Ino started to feel her emotions stirring again. It wasn't jealousy, or at least she didn't think it was, but it was definitely something strong enough to make her uneasy. Well, what was new on this trip? Ino sighed, staring at the red and blue backs of the two as they walked, deciding that it was just guilt of not telling Sakura about what happened yesterday.

"Oi! You, pretty young blonde woman! I know you like stuffed animals!" a voice called out to Ino from her left, shaking her from her thoughts. She stopped in her tracks and turned to the booth from which the calling had come from. It was a game booth with a middle-aged man, much like the Ichiraku Ramen owner, and his face was splattered with an over-done smile.

"If you're able to shoot five moving baskets in a row, you'll win a big stuffed animal of your choice!" the man continued, his smile seemingly unbreakable as he gestured to the stuffed animals all around him, "One round for only 500 ryou! What do you say, pretty lady?"

Ino narrowed her eyes at the man, his offer almost inviting as she saw the multiple cute stuffed animals hanging blissfully around the booth. The one that caught her eye specifically was a pink pig- the very meaning of her name. Its exaggerated facial features, little hooves and soft appearance really had its grip on her. She wanted it.

"Alright, old man," Ino said as she reached for her small pack for coins, "Let's do this." The man beamed with satisfaction as she approached his booth and handed him the coins.

**-XoxOxoX-**

"Hey, where's Ino?" Sakura asked as she turned around and saw that the blonde wasn't walking behind them anymore. Naruto shrugged and Sasuke scanned the crowd of people on the block. None of them had noticed the girl slip away.

"DAMN IT!" they heard someone curse in frustration loud enough for many people to turn their heads.

"Found her," Sasuke said as they started to make their way towards the sound of profanities.

The three found Ino in a state of fury as she tried to throw balls through the moving hoop, ridiculous carnival music playing in the background. She made the last ball but the next merely bounced off the rim and down to the floor. An annoying ringing sounded the end of the round.

"Round 3?" the booth owner asked slyly, holding out his hand towards an infuriated Ino.

"ARGH!" Ino growled, as she reached for her pack again. A hand suddenly stopped her wrist and saw that Sasuke had come to her side, dropping coins into the man's hands.

"One round for me, please," he said bluntly. The man's grin grew wider.

"Oh ho, the boyfriend coming to the rescue hmm?" he said, "Alright, five balls."

'_He's not my boyfriend!'_ Ino wanted to protest but she was at a loss for words, taken by surprise by Sasuke's unexpected intervention.

"You think you can do this, Sasuke-teme?" Naruto teased. Sasuke only grunted in reply while the annoying bell signaled the beginning of the round. Ino stood there in shock as she watched Sasuke make every single one with ease even when the hoop moved faster with every cumulated shot. Nothing but net.

Once again, she was humiliated... and by the same guy who had already given her the embarrassment of a lifetime in the last 48 hours.

"Winner!" the booth owner cheered, then energetically gestured to the stuffed animals, "Which would you like, sir?"

Sasuke turned around and started to walk away with his hands in his pockets.

"I'll let her choose. There's another game I want to play."

Ino looked at the Uchiha's retreating back and her face burned for the millionth time in the past two days. Was he just trying to be cool? She didn't need anyone interrupting her quest for the cute stuff pig and yet Sasuke, of all people, intervened and actually just _won_ the damn game for her. Was he deliberately out to embarrass her, or what?

"Hey, Sasuke, wait!" Sakura went after him, not keen on the group splitting up.

"So Miss, what'll it be?" the booth owner asked.

"The pig," Ino replied quickly, eager to get away from the booth as soon as possible. Once the stuffed animal was in her hands, she and Naruto made their way to Sasuke and Sakura who had stopped at another game a couple booths over.

"Ino, your face is as red as Sakura's shirt," Naruto observed, his face in amused suspicion, "Whatsamatter? Embarrassed that you just sucked and had Sasuke come to the rescue?"

Ino glared at him as she pulled her fist back looking like she was about to punch him, "SHUT IT!" Naruto's teasing didn't quell her heightened emotions.

"Okay, okay," Naruto said in defense, "I was just joking, yeesh."

They were nearing the booth Sasuke and Sakura were at and Ino couldn't help but observe them. Sakura was trying to throw ping-pong balls into small sized cups with no success. She looked up at the boy beside her, hand behind her head, sweat dropping, lightly blushing and smiling in embarrassment that she couldn't get even one in.

Something tugged in Ino when she saw that Sasuke was looking down at the pink haired girl with soft eyes and a smile slightly bigger than the usual ones he occasionally gave besides his smirks. It was a real one, Ino could tell. Even to someone who didn't know Uchiha Sasuke very well knew that the boy rarely gave smiles.

And there he was, giving one the pink-haired girl next to him.

For the first time since they've arrived, Ino's emotions died down.

**-XoxOxoX-**

"I can't believe you got me into this," Sakura said, leaning on to the side of the small swan boat in annoyance. Naruto turned to her, the swan slowly starting to make its way into the tunnel.

"Hey, hey, don't blame me!" he argued, "The old lady wouldn't let us leave unless we rode this dumb thing!"

His demeanor suddenly changed, as he inched closer towards Sakura, eyelashes batting and his hands clasped together.

"Although… I'm not complaining," he said.

Sakura slapped him without hesitation, "You just called it dumb, you idiot!"

Ino laughed as she and Sasuke watched them go from behind the railings. The old owner of the Tunnel of Love ride, unknowingly to her customers, was determined to play matchmaker, getting potential or already-together couples to ride her attraction. She had caught the four walking by and relentlessly tried to convince them to go in, not letting them leave. No one had the heart to ruthlessly say no after all her coaxing.

It was awkward, to say the least.

"That's not gonna end well," Ino said more to herself than anyone else when Naruto and Sakura disappeared into the tunnel. Sasuke grunted in reply, making Ino remember that he was, indeed, standing beside her.

Though Ino's embarrassment was still there, her emotions were calmed much more than before. She still had tried to have no unnecessary contact with Sasuke as much as possible but if she had no choice, such as the moment, she honestly didn't mind it… much.

"Alright, it's your turn, loves," the old lady said to them as she got the next swan ready.

"Wh-what?" Ino stammered. She had sighed in relief when the old lady only goaded Naruto and Sakura into riding the Tunnel of Love but now the relief was shattered into a million sorry pieces. Sasuke merely looked at the old woman with eyebrows slightly raised.

"Okay, the swan boat's all ready," the old woman gestured to it, "Get in!"

Ino glanced at Sasuke at the same time he glanced at her.

"But-"

"No, buts! In you go!" the old woman got behind the two and started to push them forward, "I'm not hearing any arguments!"

Ino's mind and heart raced, not even fathoming how already flustered she was. She knew that this little old woman was absolutely NOT going to back down, from what she saw with Naruto and Sakura. And she knew Sasuke also realized the same thing for he walked forward and slipped into the boat without any objection.

Ino flinched as the side door was slammed shut. She sat there stiff as a board, legs tight together and arms wrapped around the stuffed pig in front of her. This was bad. So, so, so very bad.

And awkward.

The swan boat slowly jerked forward making Ino yelp.

"Toodalo, loves! Enjoy the ride!" the old lady called as she started to prepare the next boat for the next unfortunate couple. Their swan started to enter the dark tunnel.

The ride was silent for the first moments, with only the splashing of the water and atrocious romantic music filling the air. The tunnel was dimly illuminated with florescent lights shaped in hearts and cheesy words. Slightly erotic and romantic images were plastered on the pink and red walls, not making the situation any better.

Ino refused to look at the walls after the first ten seconds of being inside. Of all places to be, alone, with him it just _had_ to be something as embarrassing as the Tunnel of Love. This trip couldn't have gotten any worse.

"You look tense," Sasuke suddenly said, making Ino jump, "Is something wrong?"

Did he just ask if something was wrong? Oh, no, there was nothing wrong with being in the dimly lit Tunnel of Love (that had erotic pictures on its walls and screwing music playing in the background) with Uchiha Sasuke. Nope, nothing wrong with it. This was _totally_ normal.

Ino was silently thankful that the tunnel was dim and the only light matched the color of her pink cheeks.

"N-no," she forced herself to say, trying terribly hard to not make eye contact, "I'm fine."

"You're squeezing that stuffed toy too tightly," Sasuke observed, "The stuffing's coming out."

Ino looked down and saw that what he said was true. White cotton poked out from two holes near where her hands were gripping. She hadn't realized how hard she was holding on to the poor thing.

It was silent again for a few more moments.

"Thank you, by the way," Ino said quickly, not being able to stand the awkwardness of the silence for her, "For the stuffed animal."

Sasuke merely shrugged as he leaned back and putting his elbows on top of the swan's seat. As he did so, his hand accidentally brushed her shoulder, making her even more uncomfortable.

"No problem."

Silence again. Ino was going insane. The tunnel felt like it was going on for an eternity but it couldn't have been 200 feet long even with twists and turns. Damn the slow speed of the damned swans.

Ino looked at the corner of her eye at boy beside her. He didn't look amused, or aroused by the setting but he didn't look bored either. She realized she hadn't been this close to Sasuke in a long time and she saw that his features had definite change... a more refined change she might add. From afar, she saw the maturity, yes, but now that she was up close, even in the dim light, she able to see the fine details.

His jaw was more defined, the curve to his chin smooth and angled nicely. His arms looked lean and strong, the shadows of the dim light hugging the crevices of his muscles. What she could see of his chest looked chiseled, pulling on her curiosity as to what the whole thing looked like. His hair was a little longer than usual, though the spikes were still in the same places.

"So…" Sasuke started to say slowly, breaking her from her little observation session. It was evident that he also found the silence in the Tunnel of Love awkward.

"How have you been, Ino? We haven't talked much."

'_We've never talked much at all,'_ Ino thought in her head. But this was weird to her. Sasuke was actually trying to talk to her and the fact that he said her name at all surprised her a little. She didn't know if it was from the awkwardness of the situation or if he really wanted to talk to her on his own accord but one thing was for sure either way… she had to put up her end of the conversation.

"Er, I've been alright," she replied, averting her eyes to look in front of them, "How about you?"

"Pretty well," he said, shrugging, "Although it's nice to finally have a little time away from those two." Ino's ears perked up at the last bit.

"Why so?" she asked, her curiosity giving her enough courage to turn and face him. Sasuke turned his head to look at her also.

"I've seen them every single day since I've been back," he smirked, "I don't know anyone who wouldn't be overwhelmed by that."

That was true. Ino saw that the three were always together no matter what they were doing. She didn't blame Naruto and Sakura for always wanting to be with him , though, but she could also understand how Sasuke could feel bombarded with the clinginess.

"Oh, I see," she smiled slightly, facing forward, "Well, at least you know how much they really care. I've watched them go through blood, sweat, and tears for you, so I'm not surprised that they want to spend time with you everyday."

It was Sasuke's turn to be slightly taken off guard. Ino sounded almost like she was almost scolding him for almost complaining. He did admit, though, that he enjoyed being with Naruto and Sakura for the most part but he didn't mean anything bad when he said he felt overwhelmed. Over the course of the year, he undoubtedly realized exactly what she was trying to get at.

Sasuke looked ahead, too, and nodded, "I see."

"You should feel like for having such loyal and wonderful friends," Ino added. Sasuke slightly smiled and nodded. He understood well.

Silence once again. When was this tunnel going to reach its end?

A small splashing sound louder than the rush of water sounded and caught both their attention. Up ahead, as the swan slowly made its way, they saw an eerie human silhouette emerging from the water. Ino quickly dropped the stuffed pig and grabbed the front of Sasuke's shirt, unaware of what she was doing from the fear that took over her.

"Wh-what the hell is that?!" Ino cried loudly. The figure merely stood there, completely black and unmoving as they approached it. Sasuke felt her grip on his shirt tighten, almost pinching his skin.

"I don't know," Sasuke said, more confused than afraid. He eyed the thing but couldn't figure out what it was for it was hidden in a small packet of shadow where there were no florescent lights.

As the swan boat neared it, Ino had fully wrapped her arms around Sasuke's neck and smashed her cheek right up against his, her screaming and whimpering getting louder as they got closer. Sasuke felt suffocated and deafened at the same time, and felt goosebumps creeping on his skin.

What were they to do? There was nowhere they could exit aside from the end of the tunnel that was undoubtedly behind this eerie figure; and if they went back from which they came, they'd run into other couples for sure.

Right when their boat was about five feet from the figure, it emerged from the shadows in a jump and let out a blood-curling scream. Ino screamed in terror and flew back, carrying Sasuke with her. The swan boat was ripped from its guiding strings from the weight of the force and flipped backwards, throwing both Ino and Sasuke into the water.

The water was deeper than they thought; they were submerged in five feet of it. Ino clambered to the surface when she let go of Sasuke's neck and burst out in a coughing fit once she did. She heard a familiar laughter ring across the tunnel and saw that Naruto was standing there dressed in complete black with red and white paint on his face.

"Oh, man that was priceless," he laughed, holding his stomach, "You should have seen your faces!"

"Idiot…" she heard Sasuke growl beside her. Ino felt the fury boil.

"NARUTOOOO!"

**-XoxOxoX-**

"Are the preparations complete?" a woman stood on the roof of one of the tallest buildings, the moonlight casting a light that hid half her face in a dark shadow.

She overlooked the festival scene before her and examined people's activities with disgusting interest. What a sight it was to her; the itching to wreak havoc on such a happy time goading her to take action right that second. But she had to wait.

_Patience, patience. _

Her subordinate knelt behind her, one knee up and a hand resting atop of it. He nodded.

"Yes, ma'am," he replied, "Everything's set."

The woman's lips coiled up into a snarl-like smile, "Good."

The show was to begin soon enough.

**-XoxOxoX-**

"Hell no, I am _not_ going in there," Ino said defiantly, her arms folded and her chin up. It was getting into the evening and Naruto had suggested tostop by the Haunted Maze as their last attraction for the day before heading back to the inn.

"Aww come on, don't be a party pooper!" Naruto encouraged with one of his signature grins.

"Yeah, Ino," Sakura said, tugging on her sleeve, "It'll be fun!" Ino pulled her sleeve away and pointed heatedly at Naruto.

"Oh, no, not after what happened in the tunnel with that idiot!" she said angrily. The ordeal had left Sasuke and Ino soaked and Ino shaken for two hours. The prank was not funny at all. Even now, when she was dry and breathing normally, she did not want to dive in into anything that required her to be scared off of her underwear.

"Next group!" the attraction keeper called to the next people in line, which happened to be the four. They made their way towards the entrance with Naruto dragging Ino by the arm despite her protests. She really, really, really did not feel like walking through a maze with people jumping out at her.

"Oh my god," Ino breathed when she saw the inside of the maze. The walkway was narrow with horrific decorations of severed body parts, splattered blood, and tools of inhumane physical torture. Naruto was merely laughing as they walked on with Sakura holding on to his shoulders in terror. She didn't look like she was enjoying it as much as Ino.

Sasuke remained mostly unfazed by the sudden appearance of people dressed in the most terrifying costumes, but was occasionally jumped from Sakura and Ino's screaming. They walked in a line from the narrowness of some of the walkway, with Naruto leading the front, Sakura cowering behind him, Sasuke holding on to her shoulders so they wouldn't lose their group, and Ino going insane in the rear clutching onto Sasuke's waist for dear life.

Fear really got the best of her. She'd made unnecessary contact with the Uchiha a million times more than she planned.

Other group's screams and laughter rang throughout the maze and didn't calm Ino at all. Halfway through the maze, with even more horrible things popping out at them and fog blinding their sight, she had felt someone take hold of her wrist and unwrapped her arms from Sasuke's waist.

Strong arms had curled around right shoulder and her hand unconsciously grabbed the one holding her other shoulder. Ino's didn't care who it was but all she knew was that this Haunted Maze was a bad idea. Stupid Naruto and his dumb suggestions… It was only after they exited the maze that she saw it was none other than Sasuke who had came to her side.

"Doing alright?' he asked teasingly as he released her. Ino, flustered and still shaken, glared at him as Sakura was berating Naruto for making them go into the maze.

"No, I am not," she huffed, rubbing her shoulders at the chilly evening air. The place was just as packed as how it started, with people bustling up and about enjoying themselves. More people emerged from the maze's exit laughing or still screaming.

"I am definitely not okay."

Sasuke watched in amusement as Sakura and Ino bagged on Naruto ofor suggesting the Haunted Maze on the way back to the inn, both extremely annoyed. He looked up at the moon that shined brightly in the evening sky and suddenly caught sight of a silhouette atop one of the building from the corner of his eye.

He flashed his full sight to the building's roof but saw that the silhouette disappeared, an empty space where it had just been a half second ago. Sasuke narrowed his eyes as he kept his attention to the same spot, looking to see if the person merely moved aside. There wasn't any trace at all. His eyes have never deceived him and he wasn't one to look over such small details.

There was definitely someone standing there a few seconds ago.

And it made Sasake slightly suspicious.

**-XoxOxoX-**

Sakura sat atop the inn's flat roof, her feet a foot away from the roof's edge. She hugged her legs towards her chest and knelt her chin down on her knees, sighing in unison with the hush of the night breeze. Sakura couldn't sleep and sought out the comfort of the moon's soft light.

She didn't think of bringing a sweater with her as she made her way to the roof, not realizing how cold the night was- they were next to the ocean after all. She brought her legs closer and shivered as she regretted not bringing warmth, though feeling to relaxed to get up.

Suddenly, she felt warm cloth wrap around her shoulders and looked up to see Sasuke had placed his own sweater on her before sitting down next to her.

"Sasuke," Sakura breathed, having not expected to see him there, "What are you doing up here? It's late."

"I can ask you the same thing," he merely said, leaning back on his arms and letting his legs hang from the edge of the roof.

"I couldn't sleep," Sakura said as she held his sweater tighter around herself.

"Mm," Sasuke said, "Me neither."

This was the first time she was alone with him, almost every single other time Naruto had been with them. It was a moment Sakura had been secretly dying to have and she couldn't deny the jealousy she felt when she realized Sasuke and Ino went together into the Tunnel of Love earlier that day.

She'd wondered if they had done anything or exchanged any meaningful words but seeing a very angry Ino with an annoyed Sasuke emerge from the end of the tunnel, Sakura doubted anything intimate happened. The two were soaking wet and Naruto had emerged after them with a swelled forehead.

Sakura couldn't help but still feel jealous, especially after noticing that Sasuke had abandoned his grip on her shoulders and went to guide Ino in the Haunted Maze. Granted, Sasuke had matured into more of a gentleman in the past year, for she'd experience his courtesy numerous times.

Sakura still couldn't help it.

Her feelings towards him were still unsure to her, though she did know she did love him. She just didn't know if it was _that_ way or it _should_ be that way. They've been teammates for so long now and after the struggle she and Naruto overcame for him, how could she not love him, even it was merely just the love of friends?

What confused her even more were Sasuke's feelings towards her. He acted much nicer to her than other girls, but she figured it was because she was a close friend. He returned her hugs, offered his hand, and just gave her his sweater to keep warm for crying out loud. Sakura knew he cared about her, that was sure, and they've spent so much time together… but did he love her that way?

"Are you enjoying yourself, Sasuke?" Sakura asked genuinely, pushing her thoughts aside. He nodded in reply with a small smirk.

"I am, actually," he said, not offering more of a response. She felt a small pang of jealousy, suspicious that he was thinking of his little moments with Ino. The thought of that almost made Sakura want to straight up ask him how he felt about her. **(A/N: Sakura not Ino)**

"Sasuke, how do you feel about me?" Sakura asked, failing to catch her own tongue. She clamped her mouth with her hand, realizing that she had thought out loud.

"Feel about you?" Sasuke slightly raised an eyebrow as he turned his head to her. Her question had come out of the blue. It was too late to take the question back and to change the subject would be terribly awkward- Sakura was smart enough to see that. She decided to just continue with it.

"Yes, feel."

Sasuke observed her for a moment before looking away to the scene of multiple buildings being softly shined on by the moonlight. He was silent and didn't offer a reply, making Sakura feel embarrassed for asking. She was about to change the subject when he spoke.

"If you're asking if I care about you, I do," Sasuke said evenly. His answer left Sakura unsatisfied. She already knew that.

"I mean more than that," Sakura pressed, loosening her grip on her legs. Sasuke looked at her again with soft eyes that matched the light of the moon. Sakura's green orbs looked into his black ones in apprehension. He sat up from his lean and touched her shoulder, his eyes never leaving hers.

"Sakura, you've been one of the most precious to me," he said, remembering Ino's words back from the tunnel, "You've always been there for me even when I turned my back on you. I could never thank you enough for that." He moved a strand of her from her face to the back of her ear, his touch tickling her cheek.

"I do admit that I love you," the last three words were hard to get out from his lips for they had never made it out of his mind till now. But he delivered it so smoothly that Sakura didn't notice his struggle.

"I love you… just not in that way," Sasuke said, dropping his hand from behind her ear, "You're the precious sister I've never had."

Sakura didn't know how to react to that and just minutely widened her eyes at his response. Something inside her happily accepted it but another pulled painfully. He loved her, yes, but not in the way she thought she was hoping. Was she supposed to smile and say something about him being significant to her? Was she supposed to argue and convince him that he was just in denial? Sakura didn't know.

They stared at each other for a few moments, neither saying anything. The mixture of emotion whirling inside her suddenly calmed, seeing the sincerity that his eyes bore that she never noticed. Sakura felt her eyes start to water, the feeling of sudden relief overwhelming her when she realized her indecisiveness of her feelings stemmed from the fear of unimportance to him.

'_How troublesome,'_ she thought.

"Thank you, Sasuke," Sakura smiled at him and scooted closer to lean on his shoulder. Sasuke looked down on her pink head and let the corner of his lips slightly curve.

She was significant to him and that was all she cared about.

**-XoxOxoX-**

_Wow that felt like forever to write… but I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I tried to make it longer than I planned and I thought it came out okay. However, I really would like some feedback on my writing if you guys don't mind. Drop a review with questions, concerns, suggestions or critiques! Thanks for reading! _


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